Survival statistics for liver cancer

Survival statistics for liver cancer are very general estimates and must be interpreted very carefully. Because these statistics are based on the experience of groups of people, they cannot be used to predict a particular person’s chances of survival.

There are many different ways to measure and report cancer survival statistics. Your doctor can explain the statistics for liver cancer and what they mean to you.

Net survival

Net survival represents the probability of surviving cancer in the absence of other causes of death. It is used to give an estimate of the percentage of people who will survive their cancer.

In Canada, the 5-year net survival for liver cancer is 19%. This means that, on average, about 19% of people diagnosed with liver cancer will survive for at least 5 years.

Survival by stage

Survival varies with each stage of liver cancer. The following factors can also affect survival for liver cancer.

Liver cancer is not often found until it is at an advanced stage, when it can no longer be removed by surgery.

Having liver disease, such as cirrhosis, can affect survival.

Survival by stage of liver cancer is usually reported as a median survival. Median survival is the period of time (usually months or years) after diagnosis or treatment at which half of the people with a given disease will live longer and the other half will live less than this amount of time.

There are no specific Canadian statistics available for the median survival of different stages of liver cancer. The following information comes from a variety of sources and may include statistics from other countries.